Traditional payment methods such as credit cards, debit cards, and cash are still the most popular methods for transactions. Most bank cards are made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) material, but because PVC is a known carcinogen attributed with causing cancer from inhalation, and further, another disadvantage is that it is not typically recycled by the curbside recycling companies. Also, because of the important identifying information located on each card, including name, number, expiration date, and security code, consumers usually will shred or cut the card to prevent stolen data from falling into the wrong hands. However, many cities will only recycle cards if they are still whole because they require a certain process to be recycled. This means that most cards will be grouped with common trash and since PVC is toxic when incinerated and can lead to the destruction of the atmosphere, most cards eventually end up in a landfill or other waste deposit. Other forms of identification such as voter ballots, membership cards, account statements, passports, licenses, visitor logs may also end going through a similar process and find their way to a landfill.
Landfills are a temporary solution and the amount of waste put into a landfill can lead to dangerous toxins leaching into the soil and groundwater, thus becoming environmental hazards for years to come. Liquids are also formed when waste breaks down in a landfill and water filters through that waste. This liquid can be highly toxic and pollute the land, ground water, and water ways. Because of the importance of these forms of identification or payment processing and the relatively small footprint of a single credit card has led to people not to be concerned with the effects of the waste, many people still use these conventional forms of identification and payment, but as climate change and the negative effects on the environment are growing, the amount of waste caused by such conventional forms of identification is becoming a concerning problem.
In order to have these items continue to serve their purpose without the detriment that they cause to the planet, there must be an advancement to the medium of these items to something that is both non-disposable and universally applicable to everyone. An alternative to using conventional forms of identification and credit cards is provided in the form of biometric technology which is specific to and created from everyone's unique genetic material.
Biometric technology has proven quite useful for authentication of identification of one or more individuals and has been utilized anywhere from government organizations, banks, financial institutions, as well as many other high security areas. Since biometric characteristics cannot be easily stolen and are unique to each individual, biometric authentications processes should also provide a superior level of security than usual means of authentication such as transactional cards or physical currency. Biometric data is also less likely to undergo serious alteration or change as opposed to conventional methods. However, the receiving and analyzing of biometric data for normal transactions is a long process and impractical for businesses to implement. Thus, there still exists a need for completing transactions using biometric data in an easier and more accessible manner.